Good Spatchcock, but..........

WJS

.....I got a question.
Went to Medevil Times for the first time sunday and had a good time. One of the meal courses was a half-chicken, which was pretty good. They don't give you any utensils, you just eat with your fingers. This was new for me, and made it easy getting to all the chicken and avoiding the bones.
So I had an idea.
Spatchcock chicken and eat it with my fingers.
Got a chicken, rinsed it, patted it dry, spatchcocked it, and then put it in the fridge to "dry-out" the skin a bit.
I had it in the fridge about an hour, pulled it out,then generously coated it with Montreal Chicken seasoning (first time I've tried this seasoning). Back in the fridge while I got Mr. Egg stable at 350*. Put the bird on for about 25 min., then added 2 ears of corn (which turned out great!). Went for about 30 min. more, then shut it down for about 15 minutes.
Results: Great, BUT....
I liked the seasoning, but the flavor hadn't penetrated very far, so I tried to figure out what to do.
My Questions:
When should the seasoning go on?
How long should the seasoning stay on before cooking?
I was thinking that if I put the seasoning on before I refrigerated the chicken, I'd get more flavor, but will this dry out the chicken (skin)too much (is it possible to dry it out too much?).[p]Any thoughts on this?

The Naked Whiz

WJS,
I put it on just before cooking. Since I eat the skin, there seems to be enough skin to go with the meat to get some of the flavor with every bite. You could try working some under the skin and directly on the meat and let that sit for a while...
TNW

Toe 49

WJS,[p]Maybe try this.....pull the skin back and toss the seasoning between skin/meat. It can be a PITA, but the flavor is great. Sorry if somoene already has offered this, did not look through the responses..........[p]
Happy Q'ing........and Cap'n, nice to talk to you this weekend!

Unknown

WJS,
If you are looking for more flavor within the meat itself, perhaps you should consider injecting. A simple way to help blend spices and seasonings into the meat itself.[p]Matt.

Unknown

WJS,
There is no substitute for brining a chicken. Check out the link (I use Fat Man's Brine) below. I brine a large chicken or turkey overnight but a small fryer or two only needs about 4 hours of brining. Spatchcock the bird, brine for at least a few hours, then use The Naked Whiz's excellent cooking technique and you can't go wrong![p]Regards,
Chuck Lane

[ul][li]Brining[/ul]

char buddy

WJS,[p]I just did a spatchcock this weekend. When I want to increase the flavor quotient I either brine or do a buttermilk/goop thing. [p]Here's a lazy person's brine: Take four cups of hot water from the coffee maker or a kettle. Add a half-cup of salt and a half-cup of sugar. Experiment and add whatever strikes your fancy (peppercorns, garlic, peppers, bay leaves, vanilla, etc). Stir it all up, then add four cups of cold water. You should be able to put this directly on the chicken in a ziplock bag. I don't know the minimum time, but I like to brine overnight.[p]A second way to add a lot of flavor in depth is to soak the chicken in a buttermilk goop (courtesy of the King of Coals). Put a cup of mustard (the cheaper the better) in a bowl. Add any dry rub mixture that suits you (a half-cup should do, but the more you add, the stronger the flavor). I like to chop up a couple of habanero peppers (or scotch bonnets) and add them to the mix. Mix the mustard with two to three cups of buttermilk. Loosen the chicken's skin (just run your fingers under the skin as far as you on the breast, down into the legs), put it in a ziplock bag and add the goop. Let it soak overnight (turn it about once of twice).[p]the Naked Whiz likes to cook his spatchcocks at 350º for an hour and his motto is "keep it simple." I like to cook mine at 225º for four hours or longer until the leg reads 170º. Then I crank up the temp to 350 t0 400 for a half-hour (or until the leg temp gets to 180 to 185. This crisps and darkens the skin. It also yields a seriously good flavor and texture. [p]Good eats.[p]CB